Resilience: Continuity, Connections, & Adapting
I have read several articles about resilience over the last few months. Dennis Rensel defines resilience as “continuity and recovery in the face of change”.
Archive
Remembering the Mission: The Why and the Importance of Engaging
Approximately 8 years ago, I participated in a conference where a diverse group of people with disabilities, their family members, and professionals came together for a day to learn from each other.
The Physician as a Partner: Beyond Rapport to True Collaboration
We’ve all gotten that standard form letter that contains the dreaded line, “your physician will be leaving.” In my case, the recent letter announced that my physiatrist, Dr.
The Importance of Social Support Following Injury
On November 11, 2015, I sat on a medical exam table waiting for the orthopedic surgeon to return with the results of an MRI. In the span of two months, I went from walking between two and three miles a day to barely being able to walk across a room.
The Knee Injury
Typically, where I live, there is a flurry of activity. There is a steady stream of people and traffic. Everything is in motion. In February, I was a part of that flurry of activity.
Stuck in Second Gear
While walking to the Fitness Center for one of my sessions, I passed a pickup truck. The driver is getting ready to pull out of the parking lot. The truck smoothly shifted into 1st, 2nd, and then 3rd gear, and proceeds to drive out.
It’s not always about the Science
On occasion, I get asked to speak to groups about my experiences with Spastic Cerebral Palsy. In the fall of 2013, I stood in front of a group of health and fitness professionals and delivered a presentation about my fitness and walking program.
Person-Centered Support, Care, and Interdisciplinary Collaboration
My walking program has been built upon collaboration. Collaboration is a dynamic, creative, and interconnected process. From the beginning, I have combined approaches from a wide range of health, medical, rehabilitation, and fitness disciplines.
Charlie and His Horse: Perceptions of Pain
Growing up I experienced cramps of such intensity in both of my legs that I would break into sobs because of the strength of the pain. In most cases, a hurting and weeping four-year-old does not have the expressiveness or coherence to say anything beyond “It hurts.”
Adversity and Resilience
For eight weeks in 2015, life as I knew it stopped. I saw every doctor possible to identify the cause of a mysterious and unknown pain in my legs. By the fifth medical visit, I was exhausted.